Stranded in Quito

The good part about being stranded in Quito is that we are hanging out with good people! We've been staying with a fellow cyclist and her family, and they have generously let us stay with them for a week while we wait on the postal service. Argh. Never again through normal post.

Anyway, we've had a chance to see the city, which is full of contrasts. Poverty in the south and exorbitant wealth in the north. We had the good fortune to get to see a dance performance by a Brazilian dance company in the national Teatro Sucre in the heart of old town Quito. I've seen a lot of choreography in my life, but nothing like this. It was truly innovative, beautiful and unique and impeccably (almost :c) performed. We enjoyed it so much that we got up early the next morning to head back downtown to get tickets to last night's performance, another in a series of dances offered by the theater. As it turned out, it wasn't as aesthetically pleasing as the first, but it was incredible to watch a woman in her 40's perform solo for an entire hour. Impresionante!

The other day Hugo, our awesome mechanic, took us up to El Panecillo, the hill we tried to climb on foot but were thwarted by sketchy characters. We saw pretty much the whole city from there, and afterword he invited us out for lunch. We really enjoyed our day with him, and we are actually going to stay with them for the weekend. Carolina has family coming in to town, so we are trading houses so that her guests have a place to stay! A todos en casa - Carolina, Silvia, Elizabeth, Isabela, Emma, Roxy y Sole muchisisimas gracias! Tenemos un recuerdo para siempre de ustedes y de Quito, y eso es lo mejor de este viaje. Un beso!

My last little comment is about the surrealness of the airport. It's in the middle of the city. I took some photos and a video so that y'all can check it out. We about had a heart attack while riding into the city, looking up, and seeing a giant airliner that looked like it was about to squish us flat!

Photos: Spaghetti dinner for everyone; Hugo and Eric; La Virgen del Panecillo; giant plane landing in the city